El Paso County Commissioners Court on Monday gave the green light to the county attorney to fight Socorro's annexation plan, which includes part of San Elizario.

Unless Socorro voluntarily decides to put the brakes on the annexation plan, the county attorney intends to file a quo warranto, a legal proceeding to stop the city's proposed annexation.

"With the encouragement of the Commissioners Court, I think it's important for the city of Socorro to have some say in this matter before a lawsuit is filed," said County Attorney Jo Anne Bernal.

Bernal sent a letter to Socorro on Monday evening asking to stop the annexation plan until all legal matters are resolved.

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Aileen B. Flores

If the request is denied or ignored, then Bernal has the authority to proceed with the lawsuit challenging the annexation on the grounds that the Socorro City Council does not have the right to hold office and make such important decisions, said Commissioner Vince Perez, who represents the Lower Valley.

David Garcia, spokesman for the city of Socorro, said the city is "eagerly" waiting for the letter to see what the county has to say. The city attorney will review the letter and "any action depends upon council," Garcia added.

The Commissioners Court's decision was made after the Texas attorney general concluded last week that the actions of the Socorro City Council to extend terms in office violated the state constitution. Since then, the district attorney has filed a lawsuit challenging the council's authority to hold office.

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On Saturday, two Socorro council members, Jesus "Jesse" Gandara Jr. and Willie Madrid, resigned during a special meeting, but will remain in office until the May election.

Bernal said that the county has a very good chance to win the case if the lawsuit against Socorro is filed.

"The attorney general's opinion give us the good faith basis to believe that one or more members of City Council do not have the authority to vote on anything, most especially annexation as it affects so many people in the community," Bernal said.

"The way that you are most successful in challenging annexation is to challenge if the office holder did not have authority to vote on the annexation to begin with, and I think that is precisely what you have here. By putting this information in front of a judge, we have a very good chance of being successful, otherwise we would not attempt to file the suit," Bernal said.

Lawyer Jim Martinez, who represents a group of San Elizario business owners, including Eugenio Licon, co-owner of Licon Dairy, said his clients oppose the annexation plan and want to follow the county's lead. He said his clients are wiling to wait and see if the county can reach an agreement with Socorro to put a hold on the annexation plan.